I could do with a hand - I'm organising a film festival...

[Joe Hillshoist]

... and I really don't have a clue what I'm doing.

I'm helping out (read "doing most of the stuff for") the 2010 Nimbin film festival.

Its on at the end of October and so far I think we have one short film.

Although we may be debuting an Australian film called "Fuck the War".

If it gets finished in time.


Anyway ...


help!!!!!!!


Where the fuck do I start?



PS Mods feel free to move this to a more appropriate forum after a week or two, I just want everyone to see it.

[Joe Hillshoist]

Here's a bit about "Fuck the War".

http://theorstrahyun.blogspot.com/2010/ ... n-bit.html

[Searcher08]

Im sure Willow would be a great resource for specific content areas.


Start with the end in mind -

Ask yourself - what is the PURPOSE of the Festival? How would you know the purpose had been achieved?

Ask yourself what success would look like and get a really clear picture in your mind of what it would look like for yourself, then again from the point of view of multiple 'actors 'in the festival 'system' - everyone from projection / cinema staff to the Mayor. to visiting kids.

Do a mindmap - with spokes of Who What When Where Why and How - do an iteration then come back after 24 hours 'incubation'
http://www.xmind.net/

Find examples of really successful film festivals globally and contact the people involved in them for five minutes worth of best practice, perhaps over Skype.

If you are going to be interfacing with loads of people, use Basecamp software by 37signals is really good for simple but functional web based project management.

I would STRONGLY recommend reading and implementing GTD Getting Things Done by David Allen. This will enable you to manage detail without it driving you nuts and keep the small things lined up so they are all pointing in the direction of success.

[Project Willow]

Hi Joe,
That is great news! I am friends with the folks who ran our underground film festival here, STIFF (as opposed to SIFF which has become quite well known). Would you like me to query them?

http://www.trueindependent.org/

I'd ask Elvis for input as he is himself a filmmaker.

If you need web and/or graphics you are well covered here. Basecamp is a great suggestion for coordination.

OT: I had a border collie named Nimb

[Elvis]

Joe, is this your festival?---

http://www.nimbinfilms.co.cc/

If so, looks like it's established with many things in place ('mission statement', website, submission process etc).

Generally, I'd suggest getting as many of the filmmakers present as possible, and try to lodge and feed them (they'll love you). Have parties every night (with free libations if you can get a booze sponsor). And just try to be organized, lots of volunteers etc, make sure the schedule will work...(after all, Mussolini invented the film festival (Venice), and you better believe those films started on time!)

Just saw this on preview:

I'd ask Elvis for input as he is himself a filmmaker.

I've been to numerous film festivals, usually as a participating filmmaker, so yeah, if my perspective can help I'm happy to share it.

[Sepka]

Well, it can't be that horribly different than organizing anything else. The film choices come last. Worry first about your logisitics.

Do you have:

Equipment to show the films? You'll need a screen, projector, seating for the audience, electrical power, sound system, spare lamp(s) for projector and splicing equipment for film.

Personnel? You'll need at a minimum one projector operator, one sound man, one person to take the money, and one emcee.

Facilities? You'll need restrooms and parking at a minimum. If the parking is some distance from the event, mark the trail with stakes and plastic tape. Try to provide lighting of some sort for the trail, even just ushers with flashlights. Walk the trail yourserlf in the daylight, and make sure there's nothing to trip over. If it's outdoors, then you'll need to have emergency shelter for the equipment in case of rain. You'll need to have some system in place to manage trash. Good trash management goes a long, long way toward making sure that you'll be welcomed back.

Emergency services? Have at least one staffer certified in first aid. Let the local ambulance service know what you're up to and when, and make sure they have directions to the place. Paramedics, firemen and policemen are always good people to give free tickets to for a larger event. If the event is big enough, it can pay to have a local towing service on standby in case someone needs a tow or a jump leaving.

Extras? A popcorn popper is always welcome at a movie festival. The popcorn dealer can sell candy too. A roll of tickets for admission is a good investment as well - they're cheap, and they add to the atmosphere.

*****

I'd put it together in this order: Get a facility first. Make a realistic estimate of how many people will attend, and get something just slightly larger. Too big of a facility is just as bad as too small - if people are rattling around like peas in a can, then it's going to feel like a failure to the attendees, regardless of how many people show. You want it to feel slightly crowded.

Next get your sound and projection men. They're the heart of the operation, so choose carefully. Talk to local bands, and they'll point you toward good soundmen. They should have their own equipment. The soundman can help you find a projectionist - media geeks hang out together. Listen to what your tech people want, and try not to overmanage them. They will usually make much better decisions than you will regarding tech stuff.

Lastly, get your volunteers to be ushers, ticket sellers, popcorn sellers, etc. Teenagers and college students love doing stuff like that, especially if it's for a cause and they can watch the movies. Let your volunteers have free popcorn. Little cheap stuff like that goes a long way.

[Joe Hillshoist]

Wow thanks.

I love this place.

I'm already suddenly heaps further along thanks to you mob.


Sepka thanks.

Ok the logistics are fairly under control.

Venue and equipment is sorted, and operating staff.

We are using the Bush Theatre again - the old Nimbin butter factory. We'll have the emergency services side sorted. I'll be requalified as a senior first aider by then too. But that list is something I needed. I was going through it yesterday (I only really started on this on monday night, its wed noon at the moment,) ... well trying to get my head around making one, and it was a struggle. You have saved me some considerable brain pain so thanks very much. It would have taken me a week to sort that out myself and I'd have probably missed a few important things.

Logistics is a vital thing, and although I could organise the logistics for a major bushfire if I needed to, a film festival? Thats a whole 'nother story. I dunno where to start. I really needed a list like that.

Especially if the Bush theatre falls through as a venue, cos we'll be relying on them for a bit of support and staff. I can put together a plan b now and keep it in reserve in case things don't work out.



Thats the one Elvis, tho thats all last year's stuff. Nothing's really been done for this year. Usually it falls to one guy to pull it together, and he is under a shitload of stress this year.

The more I'm finding out about it, the better I think the infrastructure and logistical set up and all that are. But publicity is non existent, and there is basically no content and the submission process ... well thats last years one. The mission statement is pretty much the same. We really want a lot of local content, and that process is really informal. Last year people were rocking up on the day and submitting material unseen. I don't really want to have to deal with that. Its my birthday the day before the festival and I plan on getting shitfaced - but thats Nimbin, and if you live here you have to learn to deal with it.

To promote the film culture we need more than a local focus tho, we have to bring stuff in as well.

The local culture round here is fairly anti establishment. Terania creek, one of the local valleys is famous because its the first place in Australia where environmental protest actually stopped something. That area is now a national park and brings in thousands of overseas tourists a year, and millions in "eco tourism" to the local economy. Environmentalism is a huge thing here.

So thats always gonna be one of the theme's of the festival.

And that was inspired by the local hippies and their contact with the local indigenous people. There have been good relations between blackfellas and whitefellas in this part of the world for years now. Its a fundamental part of the place as well. Thats another important theme.

So there's a bit to work with. I dunno what I'm doing tho. Really. I feel a bit like I'm in over my head. (I like being in over my head, tends to bring the best out in me.)

[Hugh Manatee Wins]

content...content...content...

Documentaries, Joe. Lots of em.

The most mind-blowing one I've watched recently is about the US military mutiny during the Vietnam war called 'Sir, No Sir.'

Every...one...must...see.
I'll ship my DVD copy to Australia if I hafta.

http://www.sirnosir.com/

The full series is now on line.
Click on a title to watch each individual episode:

Episode 1: For Those Who Would Judge Me
Episode 2: Rules of Engagement
Episode 3: Why We Fight
Episode 4: Broken Soldier
Episode 5: This is not Human Nature
Episode 6: No Longer a Monster

Other docs-
> The Corporation (history of this fascist entity)
> The Agronomist (resistance in Haiti)
> Hearts and Minds (Vietnam-era expose of fascist sports-war mentality)

[Joe Hillshoist]

Hi Joe,
That is great news! I am friends with the folks who ran our underground film festival here, STIFF (as opposed to SIFF which has become quite well known). Would you like me to query them?

http://www.trueindependent.org/

Yes please.

That'd be great.

They look like the sort of festival that appeals to me anyway, local, and independant.

I'd ask Elvis for input as he is himself a filmmaker.

If you need web and/or graphics you are well covered here. Basecamp is a great suggestion for coordination.

OT: I had a border collie named Nimb

Cool and thanks.

Did you know the name Nimbin comes from the local bundjalung word "Nimbinge" meaning little magic hairy man?

Like a yowie but little. They skip between worlds and have a physical presence but are also spirits of a sort. I'll bet your dog was trippy as.

And searcher, thanks. That GTD thing lead me down all sorts of interesting paths then.

[Joe Hillshoist]

Awesome hugh.

Cheers.

[Elvis]

But publicity is non existent

I would start on that right away, to whatever extent you can. I gather you can capture some of the tourist market, and would try to get free stories in the tourist mags, websites etc, and ads with whatever publicity budget you have or can get. A film fest could be just the sort of extra attraction to interest folks planning their holidays. Work media & tourism groups for sponsorship where appropriate.

the submission process ... well thats last years...
Last year people were rocking up on the day and submitting material unseen. I don't really want to have to deal with that...
we need more than a local focus tho, we have to bring stuff in as well.

I would also get on this right away. That festival submission service linked to your site, "Without a Box," is/was a popular service (as far as I know it still is), I suggest using it again, reactivate the account etc. It will give exposure to your fest, to the filmmakers who look there for festivals to enter.

An informal submission process is nice, and at this somewhat late date (for a festival in October), streamlining the process could help. Usually there's a fairly long lead time from the submissions cut-off to the event itself, and producers apply early to fill out their festival "season." Check other festivals occurring around the same time to see which are 'competing' for the same calendar days, and maybe adjust your festival dates accordingly.

Another thing film festival organizers often do is make a sponsorship deal with an airline: the airline flies your out-of-town filmmaker invitees to the fest in return for PR 'ink' (logos etc) in the festival poster, program, advertisements & other literature etc. (there again you can often get a local printing/copy place to be a sponsor.)

[8bitagent]

Lemme know what specific events, current or historical situations, or any themes you want films for. I've seen many many hundreds of solid documentaries, from character studies and offbeat biographies to soul shattering and mind blowing stuff. I can think of a documentary or two(or three) for virtually anything one can think of.

documentaries i can recommend good stuff on:

-gay rights in america/world wide
-minority civil rights
-9/11
-current wars
-US imperialism
-war profiteering
-Islamic extremism
-worker rights in the developing world
-corporatism/globalization
-artists
-homelessness
-art/design/architecture
-existential/metaphysical
-true crime
-tournament stories
-slice of life
-mental health issues
-undefinable

[stefano]

I just had a chat to someone about this film, I'll go see it on Sunday.

Fierce Light: When spirit meets action

Fueled by the belief that "another world is possible," Fierce Light is a compelling, global journey into the world of spirit in action, an exploration of what Martin Luther King called "Love in Action," and Gandhi called "Soul Force"; what Ripper is calling "Fierce Light."

The 2006 murder of friend and fellow media-activist Brad Will in protest-torn Oaxaca, Mexico, is the impetus for Ripper's journey, which takes him to the flash points of spiritual activism around the world, including Montgomery, Alabama; Robben Island, South Africa; Andrah, India; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and South Central Los Angeles, where a months-long protest against the razing of a vital community garden provides a highly dramatic spine for the wide-ranging film.

En route, Ripper encounters a number of eloquent icons, including American Civil Rights legend Congressman John Lewis, actor turned activist Daryl Hannah, Nobel prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Pulitzer Prize Winning Author Alice Walker, Buddhist peace activist monk Thich Nhat Hahn, famed tree sitter Julia Butterfly Hill, and dharma punk, Noah Levine.

[vanlose kid]

Hey Joe,

Here's a link to the FiSahara filmfestival: http://www.festivalsahara.com/

You might be able to find stuff of interest, plus the setup sounds a lot like what you have going in Nimbin.

Here's a guardian article on it:

FiSahara – the film festival in the desert
The world's most remote film festival takes place in a refugee camp deep in the Algerian desert
(20)

Stefan Simanowitz
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 13 May 2010 23.30 BST

The hordes who descended on Cannes this week have a particular idea of what a film festival is: glittering with wealth, a home to stars, a marketplace for the arts meeting with finance. A very different vision of what a film festival is was on display late last month, though, in a location far removed from the Croisette.

FiSahara – the Festival Internacional de Cine del Sahara – is the world's most remote film festival, taking place in a refugee camp deep in the Algerian desert. It's not a place for deals to be done – the purpose of FiSahara is to raise awareness of the plight of the Sahawari people, exiled from their own land, which is controlled by Morocco, and seeking the right to self-determination.

FiSahara takes place in Dakhla, the most isolated of four camps, 130 miles from the nearest town and home to around 30,000 Saharawi refugees. There are no paved roads, no sources of water, no vegetation and in summer, temperatures can reach 50°C. And yet once a year a multiplex-sized screen rolls up on the side of an articulated lorry, a tented village springs up in the centre of the camp and hundreds of actors, directors and film industry insiders fly in from around the world for a programme of more than 30 films, some made by the refugees themselves.

Film screenings might seem an unusual luxury for refugees who are entirely dependent on external aid for most of their basic needs, but the festival's organisers regard culture as an important aspect of humanitarian aid, essential for maintaining the spirit and identity of a people who have lived in exile for more than 35 years.

Films offer the refugees a window on the world – it is remarkable to see an audience of more than 300 refugees sit captivated for two hours watching the unfolding story of a Mancunian postman in Ken Loach's Looking for Eric. Mahyouba Ahmedu, 16, is particularly enthusiastic about a South African film called The Manuscripts of Timbuktu. "Seeing the way that Tuaregs live like us in the desert was very interesting," she says. "I would like to travel and to understand what it is that makes people different and what it is that makes people just the same."

Deiga Aklaminhom is 32 and has lived her entire life in Dakhla. FiSahara offers a welcome break from the monotony of life as a refugee. "I have been waiting all year for this week to come," she smiles. It's not just the screenings that liven things up: "For me the workshops have been so wonderful." Umpteen workshops are run by film industry professionals offering the refugees access to film-making equipment and audio-visual training, and on the last day of this year's festival, a new radio, film and television school was opened in a neighbouring camp. The school will provide technical training and the work produced there will form part of the future festival programmes. "The development of our own film culture is important in the nation-building process," says Jadiya Hamdi, the Saharawi government in exile's minister of culture. "It is vital that Saharawi stories are told by Saharawi people".

There is no shortage of stories among the people of the camp. Despite his failing eyesight, 70-year-old Salek Sahah Yahia sat through El Problema, a film exploring the history of the crisis in Western Sahara. "My head is full of memories," he says afterwards. "It was many years ago but for me the day napalm bombs fell on our village is like this morning." In 1976, Yahia led his family to the safety of Dakhla before returning to fight for four years against the Moroccan occupation. "I am an old man, but I am still ready to pick up a gun," he says. His fighting days are probably over, but FiSahara means his tale, and those of the thousands like him, might live on in film.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/may ... m-festival

*

[jingofever]

Maybe you can show Where the Green Ants Dream.